


Many Ways to Fly

by Creator_Chaos



Category: Yu-Gi-Oh! Zexal
Genre: Amusement Parks, Childcare, Gen, M/M, Pre-Relationship, aro-ace spectrum, i.e. Haruto being adorable and getting whatever he wants
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-11-27
Updated: 2016-11-27
Packaged: 2018-09-02 16:54:07
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,042
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8675272
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Creator_Chaos/pseuds/Creator_Chaos
Summary: He was a dragon tamer and a Barian Emperor and a Galaxy-Eyes master (despite having lost that duel, because Kaito would manage to die and win a duel anyway), and somehow he was simultaneously a fifteen-year-old with a stupid, stupid crush.--Kaito is taking Haruto to the amusement park, and Haruto decides Mizael should come. Mizael doesn't object too much.





	

**Author's Note:**

  * For [AuroraFantasy](https://archiveofourown.org/users/AuroraFantasy/gifts).



Mizael’s heart clenched as he saw Kaito Tenjo outside after school. A normal reaction to seeing someone you killed, he told himself.

Not that he hadn’t seen Kaito since he’d killed him. There’d been many conversations as they all tried to grapple with their new reality, amongst human and Barian and—well, they were all human now, weren’t they? At any rate, they’d talked, and there weren’t any—hard feelings was not the right phrase to use about killing someone. The point was that even if it was a normal response to seeing someone you killed, he did not need to feel like his heart was trying to claw its way up his throat any time he saw Kaito. Speaking of which, why was Kaito even here? Could he—oh god, was Kaito looking for him?

Mizael had two realizations in quick succession. The first being: the middle school was right beside the elementary school that Haruto now attended. Obviously Kaito was picking up his younger brother.

The second being: crap, he had it _bad_.

This was stupid. There was no reason for his face to be burning or his palms to be sweating. He didn’t have to talk to Kaito, didn’t even have to acknowledge him; he could just pretend he hadn’t noticed him (he was sure Kaito hadn’t noticed him) and go home, maybe taking a long route so that he’d have an excuse for why he looked like he’d just run several flights of stairs.

He didn’t.

“Hello Kaito.” _Fuck_. At least his voice came out normally.

Kaito turned, eyebrows lifting slightly. “Oh, hey Mizael.”

“Picking up Haruto?”

“Yeah.”

“Funny that I haven’t seen you before then.” Well if that wasn’t a good way to sound desperate.

Kaito didn’t seem to notice. “He wanted to take the bus at first, since he’d never gone to school before.” A small smile played on his lips. “The novelty wore off.”

“Niisan!” They both turned as Haruto ran up. “Oh!” He skidded to a halt beside Kaito, suddenly shy. “You’re…”

“Mizael,” he said, swallowing thickly passed the lump in his throat. He shouldn’t have come over. “You can call me Mizael.”

Haruto had worked his hand into Kaito’s, who squeezed it as he gave him a reassuring glance. Haruto looked back at Mizael and smiled timidly. “You just started school too, didn’t you?”

“That’s right,” Mizael replied, squatting down to his level. “Kaito said you’ve never been before. I haven’t either. It’s been a bit hard getting used to it. What about for you?”

“It’s been a little hard,” Haruto agreed. “I’m behind in some stuff since I couldn’t study for a while. But I’m _really_ good at science because my big brother tells me all about his work. And I’ve made some new friends in my class!”

“That’s great! You’ll have to tutor me sometime, I’m not doing so well in science.”

Haruto giggled. “I didn’t mean I can do middle school science. You should ask my brother if you need help with that.”

Mizael and Kaito locked eyes, then quickly looked away. “Some other time, perhaps,” Mizael said with a plastered smile.

“Well not today of course,” Haruto continued on happily, “we’re going to the park! I couldn’t go when I was sick and then it took a while for new people to start running it and repair it, but now I’m better and it’s better and we’re gonna go!”

Mizael gave a slow blink as he tried to process this. “You’ve never been to a park?”

Haruto laughed again. “Not _a_ park, silly, _the_ park! With the rides and games! Hey, actually, you’ve never been there either. You should come with us!”

“Haruto,” Kaito scolded, “I’m sure Mizael has other things to do.”

“Oh. Do you?”

“Um, well…” His Friday nights so far had consisted of Durbe getting him to grudgingly start his homework, watching Vector play videogames (Mizael had made a game of counting the dragons in them, even though most of them died), or Alito trying to rope him into some misadvised adventure. “Not really…”

Haruto beamed. “Great!”

Kaito shot him an apologetic look. “You really don’t have to,” he said over Haruto’s whining.

“I uh…” He glanced between Haruto’s puppy-dog eyes and Kaito’s increasingly penetrating gaze. “I don’t want to impose…”

“You wouldn’t be,” Kaito replied. “If you wanted to come.”

And so, somehow, Mizael found himself walking the glittering grounds of the Heartland amusement park. He was still in his uniform, and had merely pulled the tie off in the car and shoved it in his bag. He hadn’t thought to ask… if he was here, then was this a group thing? Should he have invited anyone else? Kaito hadn’t suggested it, so he guessed not. Kaito wasn’t saying much of anything. He hadn’t expected him to be so reserved, but given their past interaction, he probably didn’t have a good point of reference.

If he could never think about killing him again, that would be great.

“Oh, can we get some cotton candy first?” Haruto asked from where he hung off Kaito’s hand.

“We can do whatever you want,” he replied, eyes transforming with warmth.

“Okay!”

Mizael trailed after them as Haruto received a cloud of pink and blue. Kaito refused one of his own, but Mizael didn’t know how to be firm against Haruto’s wide eyes, and wound up with a second shoved into his hand. He took an experimental bite, and it passed his lips like a cobweb before condensing into brittle sugar in his mouth, then melting away.

Haruto was off again, pointing excitedly at different rides as he inhaled the sugar. He pulled up short at a booth with a pool at waist-level behind a counter, a flurry of rubber ducks drifting around on an invisible current.

“Want to try?” the worker behind the counter asked. “Pick a duck and get the prize listed on the bottom!”

Haruto looked at the toys suspended from the roof of the booth, and before he could ask Kaito was already offering him one of the tickets he’d bought in a bundle at the gate. He handed it over happily and got a cartoonish fishing-pole to hook the ducks with.

After serious thought and a few close misses, he finally plucked one off his pole and looked at the bottom. “Aw, I didn’t get anything.”

“Better luck next time,” the worker consoled him. “Want to try again?”

He looked up at the toys again, but shook his head. “Maybe later.”

“Want to go on some rides now?” Kaito asked.

“Yeah. Hey Mizael, what kind of rides do you like?”

Mizael startled at the sudden address. “I don’t know, I’ve never been on any before.”

“Hm…” Haruto spun on one heel, surveying the grounds around them. “Oh! Didn’t you used to have a dragon?”

“ _Haruto_!”

“It’s alright!” Mizael assured him as Haruto looked between them in confusion. “I did, yes.”

“Okay, let’s try the dragon ride first!”

Mizael wasn’t sure what to expect, but soon they were standing in line for a miniature roller-coaster, each car a segment of a long dragon body. Kaito gave him an apologetic look over Haruto’s head, but Mizael shook his head with a soft smile.

The ride was unremarkable aside from a few minor stomach drops, but those were just as likely attributable to being squeezed into the car beside Kaito. Haruto seemed similarly unimpressed, remarking as soon as he cleared the ride, “Let’s find a bigger one next.”

“Don’t make yourself sick,” Kaito warned.

“I won’t!”

He didn’t, but this couldn’t always be said for the other two. First it was a spinning cylinder that pushed them against its walls and made Mizael feel like his lungs were crushed. After that was a rest in the form of a ring of swings that sent them flying through the air, during which Mizael caught himself giggling and was relieved everyone was too far separated to hear. But then it was a small cart that spun them around and at odd angles, and he and Kaito both stumbled out after a skipping Haruto.

He lost his footing to the vertigo and bumped sideways into Kaito, who shoved him off. “Use your own legs, mine are busy.”

Mizael stumbled into the wall of an exhibit, smacking his hands on it and leaning with his head dropped between his arms.

Kaito came over. “Are you going to be okay?”

He shook his head. “I can’t do this. Your brother is too strong.”

Kaito chuckled, then Haruto was with them again and asked, “What’s wrong? Is Mizael sick?”

Mizael was too focused on not throwing up in front of his crush, but Kaito replied for him. “I think he just needs a break. Why don’t we cool it on the rides for now?”

Haruto nodded and led Mizael into a throng of people, setting him at a picnic table. He couldn’t hear over the thrum of the crowd, but saw the brothers talk to each other and walk off. Good, maybe he could pull himself together. Maybe he could sneak away and pretend this never happened.

His head didn’t stop spinning enough to try this before they returned. Haruto plopped down happily across from him, already filling his mouth with funnel cake. Kaito slid in beside him and held out a basket of French fries. “Here, settle your stomach.”

He took a tentative nibble; it was salty and less greasy than expected, and he felt his stomach recede a bit from his throat. He accepted the basket and ate them methodically. “Thanks.”

Kaito nodded as he took a bite of a corn dog. Mizael narrowed his eyes at him; Kaito looked at him curiously as he swallowed. “What?”

“How can you eat that? It’s disgusting.”

Kaito held his gaze as he purposefully took another large bite.

“Hey!” They both dropped the faces they were making at each other as they looked at Haruto. “Since we’re taking a break from rides, can we play some more games?”

So they were off again, Haruto scouting the booths for a likely target. Mizael eyed them too, still munching his fries—they all seemed interchangeable, some sort of target practice challenge with assorted toys for prizes. Haruto stopped at one with ten bottles stacked behind the counter and handed over a ticket for three baseballs to throw.

“This seems pretty easy,” Mizael commented.

“It’s supposed to,” Kaito replied. Mizael looked to him curiously as Haruto took aim.

The ball clonked into the bottom left bottle and bounced off. Mizael was surprised—had he not thrown hard enough? Haruto tried again, and a third time, and not a single bottle fell.

“Aww,” he whined. “I can’t win anything.”

“If you want one of the prizes we can just buy it,” Kaito told him.

“It’s not the same,” Haruto pouted.

“Let me try,” Mizael offered.

“Suit yourself,” Kaito sighed, handing him the rest of the tickets.

Three balls later, Mizael stood fuming. “I hit it! They should have fallen!”

“They’re really getting you, huh?” Kaito asked in amusement.

Mizael turned towards him. “What is it? Are they actually attached to each other?”

“No, they’re not that obvious, or they wouldn’t get away with it. They just design it so it’s much harder than it looks.”

“But if they’re not attached, then they’re just stacked bottles. They should have fallen over.”

“It’s more about how they distribute the weight in the structure so that it stays up. The bottles they use are probably designed for it too. That way it’s possible, but they’re guaranteeing a profit by tricking people into spending more money on the games.”

“But if they’re just stacked bottles…”

Kaito rolled his eyes. “I can see why you’re not doing so well in science.”

Mizael spun on him. “Look here, Kaito Tenjo, the scientific method hadn’t been invented when I was last alive.” A mother passing by looked at him in concern and hurried her child along. He grimaced and grabbed Haruto’s hand. “Come on, we’ll beat a different one.”

Kaito tagged along as the two of them went on the prowl, watching other park-goers play games and whispering strategies to each other. They finally settled on a darts game that involved popping brightly-colored balloons. As Haruto handed over a ticket for three darts, he and Mizael gave each other determined nods.

He missed the first two as he figured out his aim. The third one glanced along the side of a balloon, but bounced off harmlessly to the side. Haruto gave a huff of frustration, but Mizael tapped his shoulder and he collected himself as Mizael took his place.

Mizael’s first shot was another glancing blow that fell to the side. He tried again, aiming further right, but overdid it so that the point missed entirely and only the body of the dart tapped the balloon. He narrowed his eyes and steadied his hand, and sent the last dart into the very center of the center balloon.

The pop was half-drowned by their cheer as they turned to each other, hands meeting in a double high-five.

“Congratulations,” the worker said, “you can pick from these as your prize.”

She pointed to a small section of the wall hung with keychains. Mizael glanced at Haruto then back at the keychains skeptically. “It’s not very exciting,” Haruto agreed.

“What would you pick?” Mizael queried.

Haruto scanned the hanging toys, eyes freezing on one in the corner. Mizael followed his gaze and grinned. “What would we have to do to get that one?” he asked, pointing.

The worker looked behind her. “You’d need at least six hits for that.” Haruto handed her another ticket.

Mizael helped him fix his aim, then he landed a dart into one on the bottom row. “Two.” Its neighbor soon followed. “Three!” He bounced on his heels excitedly. “Fou—aw!” The last dart landed with a thud into the backboard. “That’s only three.”

Mizael stepped forward. “I’ll just have to get the other three then.”

Haruto gave a whoop of victory as the last one popped and Mizael gestured proudly for their prize. It was an armful for Haruto as he took it from the worker and hugged it, lamé wings crunching against his chest and long neck bobbing under his chin. “Niisan, look!”

“A dragon,” Kaito said, lips twitching into a smirk as he looked at Mizael. “How thematic.”

Mizael crossed his arms with a scowl as Haruto stuck out his tongue. “Come on, Mizael, let’s do something else.”

“You’re done with the games?” Kaito asked.

“We beat it!” Haruto grumbled, waving the dragon in the air.

“What, all of them?” Kaito asked in mock surprise, looking around. “It seems like there’s an awful lot.”

Haruto continued to protest in the face of Kaito’s teasing, until he looked away in a huff then stopped abruptly.

“Woah!” Haruto cried, pointing at the Ferris wheel rising up before them. “It’s so tall! Let’s go let’s go let’s go!” He grabbed Kaito with one hand and Mizael with the other and started dragging them towards the line.

The three of them loaded into a circular carriage as the ride worker shut the gate for them. Haruto slid around to look over the side as they ascended. Mizael reclined back in the seat, arms spreading out on the railing as he took a deep breath. The change between walking the crowded park grounds and rising in their own secluded bubble was drastic. The park noises had faded to a gentle murmur with an indistinct musical background; the air was thinner without the crowded breath of hundreds, and the smattering of bright stars that stood out in the face of the park lights seemed to reach down towards them.

Mizael glanced over at Kaito as Haruto leaned against the railing, ooh-ing and ah-ing at the expanse of park below them. He looked away instinctively as Kaito met his gaze directly, then cursed himself. He had as much right to look at Kaito as Kaito did to look at him.

He looked back, and Kaito still held his gaze. “What?” he asked a touch too testily.

“You’re a liar.”

“Excuse me?” he sputtered.

Kaito grinned, nodding his head towards Haruto. “You said you hated people.”

“Oh,” Mizael blinked, calming. “Children aren’t people.” Then his brain caught up with his mouth. “Oh god, Kaito, that’s not what I meant!”

Kaito doubled over the railing, laughter falling from his lips like rain. Mizael swore he could feel it washing over him.

“What’s so funny?” Haruto asked, attention back on them.

“Nothing,” Kaito replied between chuckles.

“Whaaat?” he demanded, turning to Mizael.

“I’m just an idiot,” he muttered in reply.

“No you’re not,” he pouted.

“Well I suppose I can’t dispute that.”

Haruto thought about this for a moment before grumpily turning back to the railing. Mizael was about to try to make up with him when he gasped and pointed out excitedly. “Look, look! That’ll be way more like a dragon, right?”

Mizael and Kaito both followed his gesture to a particularly intense patch of lights to see the cars of a rollercoaster, gliding through the air on long looping tracks. “You know, Haruto, I think you’re right,” Mizael said.

Kaito turned to him behind Haruto’s back. “You up to it?”

“Of course I am!” he snapped.

And Haruto was right. It was nothing like the spinning, shaking, jerky rides that had made him sick before. It was slow, steady ascent; the moment of weightless freedom before the sudden drop; the circling spirals that drew out the approach to the ground. It was comfortingly and painfully familiar.

Kaito checked the time as they stepped off the ride, announcing, “We have to leave soon.”

“Aww, but I don’t even have school tomorrow!”

“But you have a bedtime tonight.” He started herding Haruto towards the exit.

Near the park exit was a section of kiddie rides, carousels and fun houses and petting zoo and the like. Kaito told Haruto he had thirty minutes, accepted his newly-won prize from him, and let him loose. Kaito watched him run to the carousel and climb onto a wooden tiger, a softening warmth that Mizael was starting to recognize diffusing across his face.

They found a nearby bench and sat in surprisingly comfortable silence. It was… funny, Mizael decided, sitting in an amusement park next to Kaito Tenjo, who currently had a large stuffed dragon on his lap. Not funny in the laughing way, or even in the ridiculous way, but funny because of how _normal_ this felt. This was so far removed from anything in the entire expanse of his past lives. (Not that expansive, he corrected himself: he’d only been fifteen when he died, and time hadn’t existed the same way as a Barian; it had been more fluid and less linear and now, sometimes, felt like an illusion entirely.) But here he was, and the only thing that felt unnatural about it was the thudding in his chest whenever he wondered if he could manipulate the world in such a way that this could happen again. He was a dragon tamer and a Barian Emperor and a Galaxy-Eyes master (despite having lost that duel, because Kaito _would_ manage to die and win a duel anyway), and somehow, he was simultaneously a fifteen-year-old with a stupid, stupid crush.

Kaito gave a small wave with his fingers, then glanced at Mizael. “Wave.”

He startled, turning to the carousel. Haruto was waving at him frantically, moving almost out of sight. Mizael raised a hand emphatically, and Haruto grinned and gave a thumbs-up as he slipped away to the other side.

Mizael’s cheeks burned as Kaito turned back to him and Mizael realized he’d been staring. “You seem thoughtful,” Kaito said.

He couldn’t tell if he was being mocked. When he didn’t respond, Kaito continued, “You seemed to really like the rollercoaster.”

“Didn’t you?”

He shrugged. “Well enough. I’m not really big on rides. Or amusement parks. This one in particular, actually,” he added, grip tightening on the dragon in his lap. He relaxed as Haruto ran from the carousel to a cheesy haunted house ride, a faint smile spreading across his face. “But Haruto wanted to come.”

“I see,” Mizael said softly.

Kaito looked suddenly uncomfortable, shifting one ankle onto his knee. “I was just surprised you liked some of the rides. I kind of assumed you’d need to grow up with the idea of rollercoasters to get the appeal.”

“Haruto was right,” he said with a smile. “It was familiar.” Kaito stared at him inquisitively, so he continued, “Maybe it’s the form, but since starting this life, my human memories have been much more vivid than my Barian ones. And I think that flying with Jinlon is the most vivid one I have.”

Kaito looked up into the night sky, seeming to ponder this. “Me too, I think. Flying, I mean. It seems like it was a better memory for you.”

Mizael drew a long breath and released it. “It was… all-consuming. There was no chance to think about anything else, it was just constant wind and movement and flashing scenery. It felt like we were closer to the stars than to earth, like anything that happened down there was just… so insignificant. Like it could never reach us.” He grinned. “Not the same effect here, of course, but it was still nice.”

Kaito looked a little impressed, leaving Mizael with a hint of self-satisfaction. “I wish I shared the sentiment,” he replied.

“You made your flying robot, didn’t you?” He figured his description was clumsy by the way Kaito grinned, but continued on. “Why do that if you don’t like flying?”

“I’m fine with it now. But it was just a utilitarian feature. I reasoned it would be the quickest way to get around while Numbers hunting, and I…” His eyes flicked over to where Haurto was watching a pony be led around a ring. “I needed to be quick. All I thought about was what I had to do, what would happen if I failed, if I’d messed up the design or made a mistake in the air…. From what you’ve said, I guess that was the problem. The ground’s been the only thing I think about.”

He’d left Mizael speechless again.

“Do you miss Jinlon?”

He gave a curt nod. “Being with him is really my only reference point for human life. I was too young to understand much of life before him, and it wasn’t really something I wanted to remember anyway. But in a way, I… I almost feel guilty for not missing him more.”

“What?”

“I… I’m strangely… _content_ , here. Not that I intended to be miserable, I was too aware that this second chance was a gift to throw it back at Astral. But I didn’t expect to just settle in either. Before this I was a Barian trying to destroy humans, and before that I spent as little time with other humans as I could while living with a dragon who insisted we spend all our time protecting them. But now I go to school and live in a house with a bunch of idiots and I’m… okay with that.”

“You disliked people even before you were a Barian?”

“Well, not in quite the same way. But I’ve never been particularly personable.”

“Then you’re doing a good job fooling me now.”

Mizael realized how much he’d been talking and flushed, sputtering, “You’ve been tricking me into talking about myself!”

“How am I tricking you?”

_By acting like you’re interested._ When he couldn’t come up with a response he could actually say out loud, Kaito continued, “I did say you should tell me your story.”

He had said that, when… that thing that Mizael had decided never to think about again had happened. And now he suggested he still meant it, even after Mizael had spent the evening being about as awkward as he could manage. He’d probably never get a better sign from Kaito.

“If you’d like to hear it,” he said, locking eyes with Kaito, “we should plan a better time to talk.”

Kaito sat up straighter, looking at him curiously. “Wait, are you asking me out on a date?”

He couldn’t back out now, even if the surprise on Kaito’s face was unsettling given his previous assumption. “That was my general intention, yes.”

“Mizael, I… I don’t think I’m into…” In the pause before he continued, a million options ran through Mizael’s head. Men. Rival dragon wielders. People who had killed him. People taller than him. (Not that last one, he decided—that wouldn’t leave him with many options.)

“People,” Kaito finished. “Not like that.”

“Oh.” Realization struck him. “Oh!” Oh god, he’d completely misread him. How much could he fumble things where Kaito Tenjo was concerned? “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable, I—”

“You didn’t. It was… I had fun. And Haruto likes you.” Kaito twiddled his thumbs absently. “We should plan a time to… I mean, I _would_ like to talk more, but not…” He sighed. “Look, I don’t know how to say it without making you think—”

“I don’t think anything!” Mizael interjected. Kaito looked at him, and he held his gaze with as much dignity as he could muster as he added, “Ever, apparently.”

Kaito gave a snort of laughter. “Okay, well, I’m taking Haruto to the zoo next weekend, if you’d like to come.”

“Yes, it’s a date! I mean, it’s not a date at all. A strictly platonic date. With your little brother there.”

Kaito gave him a pained sort of smile. “Really Mizael, you don’t have to, if you’re not sure—”

“I’m completely sure.”

“Look, I can tell it’s not the answer you wanted.”

“There’s nothing I want more.” Mizael couldn’t help but be a bit self-satisfied at the sudden color in Kaito’s face.

Haruto appeared before them, slightly out of breath. “You didn’t pay attention when I was waving from the funhouse! I got to go down the big firefighter pole.”

“Oh!” Kaito startled. “Sorry. Was it fun?”

Haruto nodded. “Yeah. But it’s time to go now, isn’t it?”

Kaito chuckled. “Why are you reminding me? Are you tired?”

“No!” he protested. “I could stay up for a million more hours!”

“Alright, I’ll take your word on that, so let’s not test it.” He shoved the stuffed dragon into his brother’s arms and stood.

“Thanks for playing with me today!” Haruto said to Mizael as they made their way towards the exit. “Do you think we can play again sometime?”

“Well, Kaito said I could come to the zoo with you next week, if you’d like.”

“Really? Woohoo!” He lifted the dragon over his head and skipped along excitedly. “They have a big reptile house there, I bet you’ll like it!”

“I’m sure I will—you’ve been a good judge of what I like thus far.”

“Will you tell me about your dragon then? And what you used to do together?”

“I suppose so. My stories seem to be in popular demand.” He stole a glance at Kaito, who gave him a smirk in return. “You’ll have to tell me about your dragon in return.”

“My—oh!” Haruto lowered the dragon and gazed into its plush face. “I think she’s a girl dragon. I’ll have a really good name for her next time I see you!”

Ah, yes—children were much better than people. “I can’t wait to hear of you adventures, Haruto the dragon tamer.”

Haruto laughed excitedly. “Okay, I’ll have an awesome story for next week! So you have to have one too!”

“A trade? That’s much fairer than what your brother asked—” He cut himself off. He’d meant that Kaito had merely said Mizael should tell him his story without offering anything, but that could have sounded terribly resentful given their last exchange.

He shot an anxious look at Kaito, only to catch that same softening warmth on his face as he watched Mizael. It was quickly replaced by surprise as their eyes met and then buried under a decidedly neutral expression, but Mizael knew it had been there. He swung his head forward, wings beating in his chest as he followed them out of the park.

\---

 “Your date must have gone pretty well if you’re already getting a second one,” Alito said while they waited for the others outside the school on Monday afternoon.

“I told you, it’s not a date.” Some version of this conversation had been taking place since Mizael had gotten out of Kaito’s car at 8:30 pm Friday night and walked into a living room full of inquiring eyes.

Vector ran up behind them then, throwing an arm around each of their shoulders. “Are we still talking about Mizael’s date?”

“Of course.”

“It wasn’t a—”

“How far did you get?”

Mizael, expression blank, lifted Vector’s arm off his shoulder and stepped away. As he focused on ignoring his so-called friends, his wandering eyes found Kaito waiting outside the elementary school. A moment later Kaito spotted him, held his gaze for a moment, and waved.

“Not a date, right,” Alito said smugly as Mizael gave a small wave in return.

It wasn’t. And it wouldn’t be. Not until (if ever) Kaito said it was. Until then, well… he _had_ said he missed flying. He couldn’t very well complain about the wings beating in his chest and the floating sensation in his stomach.

He watched as Haruto ran up to Kaito with laden arms and Kaito leaned down to him.

“Do you looove him?” Alito asked as he wiggled up to his side.

Vector appeared at his other. “Are you gonna tap that?”

He rammed his elbows into their stomachs and shoved them away as they coughed and gasped. Just then, Kaito pointed over to him; as Haruto followed the gesture, he gave an excited shout, waving something above his head. Mizael started towards them.

“Good luck lover boy!” Vector called behind him.

Mizael half-turned back to snarl, “Fuck you!” As he straightened, gathering his composure, he added haughtily, “I’m going to learn the name of a dragon.”

**Author's Note:**

> I hope you like your fic, AuroraFantasy! And I hope you don't mind my demiromantic Kaito headcanon, I just really love the idea of them in a queerplatonic relationship that slowly turns romantic while Mizael is bumbling and in love.


End file.
